I Do Not Consider Calling It a Boycott to Be Correct: Grigoryan

The organization of a petition on such a topic is yet another manifestation of political irresponsibility. This was stated by Suren Grigoryan in response to journalists' questions about whether the municipal authority would make concessions based on the petition results if the demands were more clearly formulated.

“I am confident that whenever a question is posed in any society—whether you support an increase in something or oppose it—people are always in favor of it not increasing. Just a moment ago, I watched again the video of Haik Marutyan from 2018, where he said that the price hike at that time was not justified, and now it’s not justified if it doesn’t go up. In 2018, not a single bus was brought in; he claimed that the price increase was not justified back in 2013. But in 2018, it became justified because everything had become more expensive over five years. When we say that we have brought in new rolling stock and that costs have increased, and there is an issue with drivers' salaries, they say the increase is baseless,” Suren Grigoryan stated.

He also noted that Haik Marutyan proposed to put the issue of public transport price increase to a referendum, but it is clear that such questions are not discussed in that way because people are always against any increase in the price of goods or services.

In response to a journalist's question about what instructions have been given to drivers, who often display aggressive behavior and clash with citizens participating in the boycott, Suren Grigoryan replied: “You are presenting it unilaterally; it seems as if people are completely civil, and drivers are getting annoyed for no reason. If, for example, a driver tells a passenger that the established fare must be paid, and the passenger takes a hammer and breaks the window, that does not fit within the framework of a boycott. I don’t even think it’s correct to call that a boycott. Back in 2013, people were transporting individuals in their private cars to protest against the public transport price hike; they weren’t using public transport. Now, it’s some sort of half-hearted boycott; they say, ‘We will use it, but in the way we envision.’ I see more people taking the opportunity to pay less or not at all rather than those expressing a political stance,” he stated.